Hopelessly Devoted

Chapter 51: Requiem for a Dream

Alyssa opened her eyes with a start. She was encased in darkness, but resting on the softest bed she'd ever felt. She knew she wasn't at her house or the show house. She couldn't figure out where she was or how she got there. She tried checking in with her alters, but for the first time since they'd emerged, they were silent.

She felt so alone but movement to her left let her know she was far from it. "I know you're not sleeping, mon cherí."

Alyssa immediately sat up. "Eric?" She inquired confusedly. A lamp turned on to the left of her revealing a seated Eric with worried eyes. "What are you doing here?"

Eric quirked an eyebrow at her. "Why wouldn't I be here? This is my house." The newfound information caused her to look around the slightly illuminated room.

It was gorgeous. Feminine. The colors were bright and bold, but no overbearing. She loved every inch of it and her subtle smile let Eric know she approved.

Alyssa turned to Eric after taking in the expansive room with confused eyes. "Do you not remember how we got here?" She looked at him further confused. "Where is here exactly?"

Eric sighed as he leaned forward. "I've been watching you, mon cherí. You've been dealing with a lot it seems and I just wanted to make sure you were safe. I know you haven't been fucking with the white walkers and wanted to keep an eye on you."

Alyssa rolled her eyes as he continued. "I found you leaving that psych ward and it stunned me. You were hysterical and I was at a loss. I brought you here to my home in Shreveport, Louisiana because though I don't know what is going on I know you don't need to be alone right now."

Just like that everything hit her like a freight train. The orphanage. Sister Winifred's confession. Sister Florence's everlasting wound. It all came tumbling back to the forefront of her mind and she couldn't take it.

The cry that left her startled Eric to attention. He was by her side in the bed in milliseconds. In a swift motion, Eric scooped Alyssa up and held her against the headboard as she sobbed loudly.

He remembered feeling this helpless twice before in his life. The first time was when he found out his mother had died. The second was the moment he learned his twin sister had been murdered.

Both instances he felt like up was down and down was nonexistent. As Alyssa cried in his arms, Eric felt like the ten year old boy that had simultaneously lost his first love and gained a little angel.

He rubbed her arm and tried his best to calm her. Nothing seemed to be working until he did something he hadn't done since his mother died. He sang.

Alyssa couldn't stop the sobs from shaking her from the inside out. She was broken. Devastated beyond repair. If she were being honest, she wanted to die. Depression and anxiety did more than engulf her. They nestled into her very spirit and took up residency.

She was on the verge of screaming from the pain when Eric's voice hit her. His tone. The inflections. Every syllable was a needle and thread that seem to slowly sew her torn parts back together.

"Pray God you can cope...I'll stand outside...This woman's worth...This woman's world..." Eric felt her slowly start to settle and continued singing.

It took a little while for her to settle completely after he finished singing, but once she did Alyssa felt lighter than she thought possible given everything she'd experienced that day.

"I used to love that song." Eric smiled to himself. "I never really got that song until now. I simply just enjoyed it." He nodded his head at her words. "My mother used to always say 'When you're happy, you enjoy the melody...when you're broken, you understand the lyrics.' I guess you finally understand it."